System and Method for Wireless Power Transfer in a Linear Cart System

ABSTRACT

A system for wirelessly transmitting power between a track and independent movers in a motion control system includes a pick-up coil provided proximate to the magnets on the movers. The fundamental component of the voltage applied to the drive coils interacts primarily with the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnets on the movers and not with the pick-up coil. Consequently, the pick-up coil does not interfere with desired operation of the movers but rather, interacts primarily with the harmonic components and has current and voltages induced within the pick-up coil as a result of the harmonic components. The energy captured by the pick-up coil reduces the amplitude of eddy currents on the mover. After harvesting the harmonic content, the pick-up coil may be connected to another circuit on the mover and serve as a supply voltage for the other circuit.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/587,177 filed Sep. 30, 2019 and entitled System and Method forWireless Power Transfer in a Linear Cart System, the entire contents ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to harvestingenergy transferred between a fixed drive member, such as a series ofcoils positioned along a track, and a moving drive member, such as anindependent cart with permanent magnets mounted thereto, in a lineardrive system and, more specifically, to a system which utilizes apick-up coil positioned around or proximate to the permanent magnets onthe moving drive member in the

Motion control systems utilizing movers and linear motors can be used ina wide variety of processes (e.g. packaging, manufacturing, andmachining) and can provide an advantage over conventional conveyor beltsystems with enhanced flexibility, extremely high-speed movement, andmechanical simplicity. The motion control system includes a set ofindependently controlled “movers” each supported on a track for motionalong the track. The track is made up of a number of track segments, anda linear drive system controls operation of the movers, causing themovers to travel along the track. Sensors may be spaced at fixedpositions along the track and/or on the movers to provide informationabout the position and speed of the movers.

Each of the movers may be independently moved and positioned along thetrack in response to an electromagnetic field generated by the lineardrive system. In a typical system, the track forms a path over whicheach mover repeatedly travels. At certain positions along the trackother actuators may interact with each mover. For example, the mover maybe stopped at a loading station at which a first actuator places aproduct on the mover. The mover may then be moved along a processsegment of the track where various other actuators may fill, machine,position, or otherwise interact with the product on the mover. The movermay be programmed to stop at various locations or to move at acontrolled speed past each of the other actuators. After the variousprocesses are performed, the mover may pass or stop at an unloadingstation at which the product is removed from the mover. The mover thenreturns to the loading station to receive another unit of the product.

In certain applications, it may be desirable to provide an actuator or asensor on the mover to interact with the product on the mover. Forexample, a clamp may actuate to secure the product to the mover or asensor may detect the presence of the product on the mover. However, theactuator or sensor requires an energy source to operate. Because a movercan travel over long distances, it is often not practical to provide afixed connection, such as an electrical cable or pneumatic line to themover. Rather, it may be necessary to provide a portable energy sourcesuch as a battery for electric actuators or sensors or a pressurizedtank for a hydraulic or pneumatic actuator. However, the portable energysource adds weight and takes up space on the mover. Further, theportable energy source needs to be periodically recharged.

One solution for recharging portable energy sources is to provide adedicated location along the track at which the energy is supplied. Themover stops at the dedicated location where a temporary connection to anenergy source may be established. However, the mover must then wait forthe portable energy source to be recharged before resuming operation.

Thus, it would be desirable to provide an improved system for supplyingpower to independent movers on a track in a motion control system.

Although certain applications may allow energy to be provided to a movervia a fixed connection to the mover, a fixed connection is not withoutcertain drawbacks. The fixed connection may be, for example, anelectrical conductor or a hydraulic or pneumatic hose. The motion of themover is typically restricted to limit the required length of theelectrical conductor or hose. The number of movers must be limitedand/or the motion of the mover is limited to a reciprocal motion toavoid tangling the conductors or hoses between movers.

Thus, it would be desirable to provide a method and apparatus forwirelessly transmitting power between a track and independent movers ina motion control system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

The subject matter disclosed herein describes a system for wirelesslytransmitting power between a track and independent movers in a motioncontrol system. An Alternating Current (AC) voltage is applied to thedrive coils where the AC voltage includes a component at a fundamentalfrequency as well as a component, or components, at harmonicfrequencies. A pick-up coil is provided around or proximate to themagnets on the movers in the linear drive system. Because a linear drivesystem is a synchronous machine, the fundamental component of the ACvoltage applied to the drive coils along the track interacts primarilywith the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnets on the moversand not with the pick-up coil applied around the magnets. As a result,the pick-up coil does not interfere with the desired operation of themovers. Rather, the pick-up coil interacts primarily with the harmoniccomponents and has current and voltages induced within the pick-up coilas a result of the harmonic components present in the voltage applied tothe coils. Thus, wireless power transfer occurs between the drive coilsand the pick-up coil without interfering with desired operation of themovers.

After harvesting the harmonic content, the pick-up coil may also beconnected to another circuit on the mover and serve as a supply voltagefor the other circuit. The mover may include, for example, a sensor, asignal indictor, an actuator, or the like mounted on the mover. Theenergy harvested by the pick-up coil allows for wireless delivery ofpower to the mover and, subsequently, to the other electrical devicemounted on the mover.

According to one embodiment of the invention, an apparatus for wirelesspower transfer in an independent cart system includes a track having alength and multiple drive coils mounted along the length of the track.At least one power segment is operative to supply an alternating current(AC) voltage to each of the drive coils, and the AC voltage includes atleast a fundamental component and a harmonic component. Multiple moversare operative to travel along the track. Each of the movers includes adrive member and a pick-up coil mounted proximate the drive member. Thefundamental component of the AC voltage is operative to generate anelectromagnetic field which engages the drive member to propel eachmover along the track, and the harmonic component of the AC voltage isoperative to generate an electromagnetic field which engages the pick-upcoil to induce a voltage in the pick-up coil.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a method for wirelesspower transfer in an independent cart system is disclosed. Multiplemovers are operative to travel along a track in the independent cartsystem, and an alternating current (AC) voltage is generated with atleast one power segment, where the AC voltage includes at least afundamental component and a harmonic component. The AC voltage issequentially supplied to multiple drive coils mounted along the track.The fundamental component of the AC voltage generates an electromagneticfield that sequentially moves along the plurality of drive coils andinteracts with a drive member on each of the plurality of movers todrive the corresponding mover along the track. A voltage is induced in apick-up coil mounted proximate to the drive member as the correspondingmover is driven along the track, where the harmonic component of the ACvoltage generates an electromagnetic field that induces the voltage inthe pick-up coil.

According to still another embodiment of the invention, a mover isconfigured to wirelessly receive power in an independent cart system.The mover includes a drive member emitting a magnetic field and at leastone pick-up coil mounted proximate the drive member. The magnetic fieldis configured to engage a fundamental component of a movingelectromagnetic field to drive the mover along a track in theindependent cart system, and the pick-up coil is configured to receivepower from at least one harmonic component of the moving electromagneticfield.

According to yet another embodiment of the invention, an apparatus forwireless power transfer in an independent cart system includes a trackhaving a length, a plurality of drive coils mounted along the length ofthe track, and at least one power segment operative to supply analternating current (AC) voltage to each of the plurality of drivecoils. The AC voltage includes at least a fundamental component and aharmonic component, the fundamental component of the AC voltage isoperative to generate an electromagnetic field configured to engage adrive member mounted on a mover for the independent cart system topropel the mover along the track, and the harmonic component of the ACvoltage is operative to generate an electromagnetic field configured toengage a pick-up coil mounted on the mover to induce a voltage in thecorresponding pick-up coil.

According to still another embodiment of the invention, an apparatus forwireless power transfer in an independent cart system includes at leastone power segment and multiple movers, where the at least one powersegment is operative to supply an alternating current (AC) voltage tomultiple drive coils for the independent cart system. Each moverincludes a drive member and a pick-up coil. The drive member isconfigured to engage a fundamental component of an electromagnetic fieldgenerated by each of the drive coils, and the pick-up coil is configuredto engage at least one harmonic component of the electromagnetic field.

According to an additional embodiment of the invention a method forwireless power transfer in an independent cart system is disclosed,where multiple movers are operative to travel along a track in theindependent cart system. An alternating current (AC) voltage isgenerated with at least one power segment, where the AC voltage includesat least a fundamental component and a harmonic component. The ACvoltage is supplied to drive coils mounted along the track. Thefundamental component of the AC voltage generates an electromagneticfield configured to interact with a drive member on each of the moversto drive the corresponding mover along the track, and the harmoniccomponent of the AC voltage induces a voltage in a pick-up coil mountedon the corresponding mover.

These and other advantages and features of the invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description andthe accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that thedetailed description and accompanying drawings, while indicatingpreferred embodiments of the present invention, are given by way ofillustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications maybe made within the scope of the present invention without departing fromthe spirit thereof, and the invention includes all such modifications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various exemplary embodiments of the subject matter disclosed herein areillustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like referencenumerals represent like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an exemplary linear cart systemincorporating multiple movers travelling along a closed curvilineartrack according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial side elevation view of one segment of one embodimentof the linear cart system of FIG. 1 illustrating activation coilsdistributed along one surface of the track segment;

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a mover from the transport system of FIG.2;

FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view of the transport system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view of a mover illustrating an exemplarymagnet configuration for a mover having a first width;

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view of a mover illustrating an exemplarymagnet configuration for a mover having a second width;

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view of a mover illustrating an exemplarymagnet configuration for a mover having a third width;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram representation of an exemplary power andcontrol system for the transport system FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is an exemplary schematic for a portion of the power and controlsystem of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation view of one embodiment of a pick-up coilpositioned around one arrangement of drive magnets as may beincorporated onto a mover;

FIG. 11 is a side elevation view of one embodiment of multiple pick-upcoils positioned around another arrangement of drive magnets as may beincorporated onto a mover;

FIG. 12 is a side elevation view of one embodiment of multiple pick-upcoils positioned around the arrangement of drive magnets shown in FIG.10 as may be incorporated onto a mover;

FIG. 13 is a side elevation view of one embodiment of a pick-up coilpositioned around the arrangement of drive magnets shown in FIG. 11 asmay be incorporated onto a mover;

FIG. 14 is a partial sectional view of the transport system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram representation of an electronic circuitmounted on a mover; and

FIG. 16 is a graphical representation of a current supplied to the coilsof the linear drive system.

In describing the various embodiments of the invention which areillustrated in the drawings, specific terminology will be resorted tofor the sake of clarity. However, it is not intended that the inventionbe limited to the specific terms so selected and it is understood thateach specific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in asimilar manner to accomplish a similar purpose. For example, the word“connected,” “attached,” or terms similar thereto are often used. Theyare not limited to direct connection but include connection throughother elements where such connection is recognized as being equivalentby those skilled in the art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The various features and advantageous details of the subject matterdisclosed herein are explained more fully with reference to thenon-limiting embodiments described in detail in the followingdescription.

Turning initially to FIG. 1, an exemplary transport system for movingarticles or products includes a track 10 made up of multiple segments12, 14. According to the illustrated embodiment, the segments define agenerally closed loop supporting a set of movers 100 movable along thetrack 10. The track 10 is oriented in a horizontal plane and supportedabove the ground by a base 15 extending vertically downward from thetrack 10. According to the illustrated embodiment, the base 15 includesa pair of generally planar support plates 17, located on opposite sidesof the track 10, with mounting feet 19 on each support plate 17 tosecure the track 10 to a surface. The illustrated track 10 includes fourstraight segments 12 with two straight segments 12 located along eachside of the track and spaced apart from the other pair. The track 10also includes four curved segments 14 where a pair of curved segments 14is located at each end of the track 10 to connect the pairs of straightsegments 12. The four straight segments 12 and the four curved segments14 form a generally oval track and define a closed surface over whicheach of the movers 100 may travel. It is understood that track segmentsof various sizes, lengths, and shapes may be connected together to forma track 10 without deviating from the scope of the invention.

For convenience, the horizontal orientation of the track 10 shown inFIG. 1 will be discussed herein. Terms such as upper, lower, inner, andouter will be used with respect to the illustrated track orientation.These terms are relational with respect to the illustrated track and arenot intended to be limiting. It is understood that the track may beinstalled in different orientations, such as sloped or vertical, andinclude different shaped segments including, but not limited to,straight segments, inward bends, outward bends, up slopes, down slopesand various combinations thereof. Further, each track segment 12, 14 isshown in a generally horizontal orientation. The track segments 12, 14may also be oriented in a generally vertical orientation and the widthof the track 10 may be greater in either the horizontal or verticaldirection according to application requirements. The movers 100 willtravel along the track and take various orientations according to theconfiguration of the track 10 and the relationships discussed herein mayvary accordingly.

Each track segment 12, 14 includes a number of independently attachedrails 20 on which each mover 100 runs. According to the illustratedembodiment, rails 20 extend generally along the outer periphery of thetrack 10. A first rail 20 extends along an upper surface 11 of eachsegment and a second rail 20 extends along a lower surface 13 of eachsegment. It is contemplated that each rail 20 may be a singular, moldedor extruded member or formed from multiple members. It is alsocontemplated that the cross section of the rails 20 may be circular,square, rectangular, or any other desired cross-sectional shape withoutdeviating from the scope of the invention. The rails 20 generallyconform to the curvature of the track 10 thus extending in a straightpath along the straight track segments 12 and in a curved path along thecurved track segments 14. The rails 20 may be thin with respect to thewidth of the track 10 and span only a partial width of the surface ofthe track 10 on which it is attached. According to the illustratedembodiment, each rail 20 includes a base portion 22 mounted to the tracksegment and a track portion 24 along which the mover 100 runs. Eachmover 100 includes complementary rollers 110 to engage the track portion24 of the rail 20 for movement along the track 10.

One or more movers 100 are mounted to and movable along the rails 20 onthe track 10. With reference next to FIG. 3, an exemplary mover 100 isillustrated. Each mover 100 includes a side member 102, a top member104, and a bottom member 106. The side member 102 extends for a heightat least spanning a distance between the rail 20 on the top surface 11of the track 10 and the rail 20 on the bottom surface 13 of the track 10and is oriented generally parallel to a side surface 21 when mounted tothe track 10. The top member 104 extends generally orthogonal to theside member 102 at a top end of the side member 102 and extends acrossthe rail 20 on the top surface 11 of the track 10. The top member 104includes a first segment 103, extending orthogonally from the sidemember 102 for the width of the rail 20, which is generally the samewidth as the side member 102. A set of rollers 110 are mounted on thelower side of the first segment 103 and are configured to engage thetrack portion 24 of the rail 20 mounted to the upper surface 11 of thetrack segment. According to the illustrated embodiment two pairs ofrollers 110 are mounted to the lower side of the first segment 103 witha first pair located along a first edge of the track portion 24 of therail and a second pair located along a second edge of the track portion24 of the rail 20. The first and second edges and, therefore, the firstand second pairs of rollers 110 are on opposite sides of the rail 20 andpositively retain the mover 100 to the rail 20. The bottom member 106extends generally orthogonal to the side member 102 at a bottom end ofthe side member 102 and extends for a distance sufficient to receive athird pair of rollers 110 along the bottom of the mover 100. The thirdpair of rollers 110 engage an outer edge of the track portion 24 of therail 20 mounted to the lower surface 13 of the track segment. Thus, themover 100 rides along the rails 20 on the rollers 110 mounted to boththe top member 104 and the bottom member 106 of each mover 100. The topmember 104 also includes a second segment 120 which protrudes from thefirst segment 103 an additional distance beyond the rail 20 and isconfigured to hold a position magnet 130. According to the illustratedembodiment, the second segment 120 of the top member 104 includes afirst portion 122 extending generally parallel to the rail 20 andtapering to a smaller width than the first segment 103 of the top member104. The second segment 120 also includes a second portion 124 extendingdownward from and generally orthogonal to the first portion 122. Thesecond portion 124 extends downward a distance less than the distance tothe upper surface 11 of the track segment but of sufficient distance tohave the position magnet 130 mounted thereto. According to theillustrated embodiment, a position magnet 130 is mounted within a recess126 on the second portion 124 and is configured to align with a sensor150 mounted within the top surface 11 of the track segment.

A linear drive system is incorporated in part on each mover 100 and inpart within each track segment 12, 14 to control motion of each mover100 along the segment. The coils 50 mounted along the length of thetrack 10 serve as first drive members. Each mover 100 includes a seconddrive member which is configured to interact with electromagnetic fieldsgenerated by the coils 50 to propel the mover 100 along the track 10. Itis contemplated that the drive members on each mover may be drivemagnets, steel back iron and teeth, conductors, or any other suitablemember that will interact with the electromagnetic fields generated bythe coils 50. Commonly, the drive member on each mover includespermanent magnets which emit a magnetic field. The magnetic fieldgenerated by the drive member on each mover improves the moverinteraction with the electromagnetic field generated by the coils incomparison to a magnetically salient structure that has no magneticfield. For convenience, the invention will be discussed with respect todrive magnets 140 being used as the drive member within each mover 100.However, it is understood that the other magnetically salient structuresmay be employed without deviating from the scope of the invention.

In the linear drive system, a series of coils 50 are positioned alongthe length of the track 10. Each mover 100 includes at least one drivemagnet 140 configured to interact with an electromagnetic fieldgenerated in the coils. Successive activation of the coils 50establishes a moving electromagnetic field that interacts with themagnetic field generated by each permanent magnet 140 mounted on themovers 100 and that causes the mover 100 to travel along the track 10.Controlled voltages are applied to each coil 50 to achieve desiredoperation of the movers.

As will be discussed in more detail below, a power segment 210 generatesthe controlled voltage to be applied to the coils. The power segment 210may utilize a modulation technique, such as pulse-width modulation(PWM), to control operation of the power semiconductor devices thatselectively connect a DC voltage to an output of the power segment and,in turn, to each coil 50. The PWM operates at a frequency substantiallygreater than a desired fundamental frequency applied to the coils 50.For example, the PWM routine may operate in the kilohertz or tens ofkilohertz while a desired fundamental frequency is commonly in the tensor hundreds of hertz. By varying the duration and polarity of DC voltageapplied to the output within the switching frequency, the desiredfundamental frequency of an AC voltage for each coil 50 is approximatedat the output of the power segment. The modulated voltage waveformincludes both the desired fundamental component to control operation ofthe movers 50 as well as harmonic components which may be used to inducea voltage in a pick-up coil 160 mounted on the mover 100.

According to one embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the lineardrive system includes drive magnets 140 mounted to the side member 102.According to the illustrated embodiment, the drive magnets 140 arearranged in a block along an inner surface of the side member facing thetrack segment 12. The drive magnets 140 are typically permanent magnets,and two adjacent magnet segments including a north pole and a south polemay be considered a pole-pair.

Each mover 100 further includes at least one pick-up coil 160 mounted tothe mover. According to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, a channel145 exists between each half drive magnet 140 positioned to the outeredges of the magnet block and the full drive magnet 140 centrallypositioned on the magnet block. The pick-up coil 160 is wound around thefull drive magnet 140 within the channel 145. A pair of conductors 162extend from the pick-up coil 160 to an upper surface of the top member104. With reference also to FIG. 14, it is contemplated that an electriccircuit may be mounted on the mover, for example, via a printed circuitboard (PCB) 165 located on the top member 104. The electric circuit maybe configured to receive a voltage induced in the pick-up coil 160 asthe mover travels along the track 10.

It is contemplated that a track 10 may be configured to have movers 100of different sizes and/or movers 100 having different magnetconfigurations traveling along the same track. With reference next toFIGS. 5-7, three movers 100, each having a different width and adifferent magnet configuration are illustrated. Turning first to FIG. 5,a mover 100 having a first width, W1, is illustrated. The mover 100includes a first half of a drive magnet 140 mounted proximate one sideof the mover 100 and a second half of a drive magnet mounted proximatethe other side of the mover 100. Between the two halves, a whole drivemagnet 140 is mounted. Each of the two halves are arranged such that onepolarity of the drive magnet 140 faces the drive coils and the wholedrive magnet 140 is arranged such that the other polarity of the drivemagnet 140 faces the drive coils. As illustrated, each of the half drivemagnets 140 has a north pole, N, facing the drive coils and the wholedrive magnet 140 has a south pole, S, facing the drive coils. Turningthen to FIG. 6, a mover 100 having a second width, W2, is illustrated.The mover 100 includes four whole drive magnets positioned adjacent toeach other. Adjacent drive magnets 140 alternately having a north pole,N, and south pole, S, pole face the drive coils. Turning next to FIG. 7,a mover 100 having a third width, W3, is illustrated. The mover 100includes a first half of a drive magnet 140 mounted proximate one sideof the mover 100 and a second half of a drive magnet mounted proximatethe other side of the mover 100. Between the two halves, a series ofwhole drive magnets 140 are mounted. Each of the two halves are arrangedsuch that one polarity of the drive magnet 140 faces the drive coils andthe whole drive magnets 140 are arranged such that the polarity of thedrive magnets 140 alternate between the two half magnets. Asillustrated, each of the half drive magnets 140 has a north pole, N,facing the drive coils and the whole drive magnets 140 have alternatingsouth and north poles facing the drive coils. The illustrated magnetconfigurations are exemplary only and not intended to be limiting. It iscontemplated that magnets having, for example, different widths ordifferent arrangements of north and south poles may be utilized withoutdeviating from the scope of the invention.

In addition to varying configurations of drive magnets 140, it iscontemplated that each mover 100 may have different configurations of apick-up coil 160. With reference next to FIGS. 10-13, four differentconfigurations of a pick-up coil, or coils, 160 are illustrated for themagnet configuration of FIG. 5. In FIG. 10, a channel 145 is providedbetween adjacent drive magnets 140. It is contemplated that a singlepick-up coil 160 may be wound around the central drive magnet 140.According to one aspect of the invention, the pick-up coil 160 may bewound from a solid conductor or from Litz wire. According to anotheraspect of the invention, the pick-up coil 160 may be formed from anumber of traces on one or more layers of a printed circuit board (PCB)shaped to be inserted within the channel 145. In FIG. 12, it iscontemplated that multiple coils 160 may be provided, where a first coil160A is wound around one half drive magnet, a second coil 160B is woundaround the full drive magnet, and a third coil 160C is wound around thesecond half drive magnet. The first coil 160A and the second coil 160Bshare the channel 145 between the first half drive magnet and the fulldrive magnet, and the second coil 160B and the third coil 160C share thechannel 145 between the full drive magnet and the second half drivemagnet. Optionally and as shown in FIGS. 11 and 13, the drive magnets140 may be arranged tightly adjacent to each other without room for apick-up coil to be mounted between adjacent drive magnets 140. One ormore pick-up coils 160 may be mounted adjacent to the drive magnets. InFIG. 11, a first pick-up coil 160A is wound adjacent to the top side ofthe drive magnets 140 and a second pick-up coil 160B is wound adjacentto the bottom side of the drive magnets 140. In FIG. 13, a singlepick-up coil 160 is wound around the periphery of the set of drivemagnets 140. It is contemplated that various configurations of magnets140, channels 145 and pick-up coils 160 may be used without deviatingfrom the scope of the invention, where the configurations may use, butare not limited to, the arrangements of magnets 140 shown in FIGS. 5-7and/or the arrangements of pick-up coils 160 shown in FIGS. 10-13 toarrive at numerous different embodiments of the present invention.

With reference again to FIG. 3, the drive magnets 140 are mounted on theinner surface of the side member 102 and when mounted to the track 10are spaced apart from a series of coils 50 extending along the track 10.As shown in FIG. 4, an air gap 141 is provided between each set of drivemagnets 140 and the coils 50 along the track 10. On the track 10, thelinear drive system includes a series of parallel coils 50 spaced alongeach track segment 12 as shown in FIG. 2. According to the illustratedembodiment, each coil 50 is placed in a channel 23 extendinglongitudinally along one surface of the track segment 12. Theelectromagnetic field generated by each coil 50 spans the air gap 141and interacts with the drive magnets 140 mounted to the mover 100 tocontrol operation of the mover 100.

Turning next to FIG. 8, an exemplary power and control system for thetrack 10 and linear drive system is illustrated. A segment controller200 is mounted within each track segment 12. The segment controller 200receives command signals from a system controller 30 and generatesswitching signals for power segments 210 (FIG. 9) which, in turn,control activation of each coil 50. Activation of the coils 50 arecontrolled to drive and position each of the movers 100 along the tracksegment 12 according to the command signals received from the systemcontroller 30.

The illustrated motion control system includes a system controller 30having a processor 32 and a memory device 34. It is contemplated thatthe processor 32 and memory device 34 may each be a single electronicdevice or formed from multiple devices. The processor 32 may be amicroprocessor. Optionally, the processor 32 and/or the memory device 34may be integrated on a field programmable array (FPGA) or an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC). The memory device 34 may includevolatile memory, non-volatile memory, or a combination thereof. Thesystem controller 30 could be a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). Auser interface 36 is provided for an operator to configure the systemcontroller 30 and to load or configure desired motion profiles for themovers 100 on the system controller 30. It is contemplated that thesystem controller 30 and user interface 36 may be a single device, suchas a laptop, notebook, tablet or other mobile computing device.Optionally, the user interface 36 may include one or more separatedevices such as a keyboard, mouse, display, touchscreen, interface port,removable storage medium or medium reader and the like for receivinginformation from and displaying information to a user. Optionally, thesystem controller 30 and user interface 36 may be integrated into anindustrial computer mounted within a control cabinet and configured towithstand harsh operating environments. It is contemplated that stillother combinations of computing devices and peripherals as would beunderstood in the art may be utilized or incorporated into the systemcontroller 30 and user interface 36 without deviating from the scope ofthe invention.

One or more programs may be stored in the memory device 34 for executionby the processor 32. The system controller 30 receives one or moremotion profiles for the movers 100 to follow along the track 10. Aprogram executing on the processor 32 is in communication with a segmentcontroller 200 on each track segment 12 via a control network 201, suchas an EtherNet/IP network. The system controller 30 may transfer adesired motion profile to each segment controller 200 or, optionally,the system controller 30 may perform some initial processing based onthe motion profile to transmit a segment of the motion profile to eachsegment controller 200 according to the portion of the motion profile tobe executed along that segment. Optionally, the system controller 30 mayperform still further processing on the motion profile and generate adesired switching sequence for each segment 12 that may be transmittedto the segment controller 200.

A gateway 202 in each segment controller 200 receives the communicationsfrom the system controller 30 and passes the communication to aprocessor 204 executing in the segment controller 200. The processor maybe a microprocessor. Optionally, the processor 204 and/or a memorydevice within the segment controller 200 may be integrated on a fieldprogrammable array (FPGA) or an application specific integrated circuit(ASIC). It is contemplated that the processor 204 and memory device 206may each be a single electronic device or formed from multiple devices.The memory device 206 may include volatile memory, non-volatile memory,or a combination thereof. The segment controller 200 receives the motionprofile, or portion thereof, or the switching sequence transmitted fromthe system controller 30 and utilizes the motion profile or switchingsequence to control movers 100 present along the track segment 12controlled by that system controller 30.

With additional reference to FIG. 9, each segment controller 200generates switching signals 207 to control operation of switchingdevices within one or more power segments 210 mounted within the tracksegment 12. The switching devices within each power segment 210 areconnected between a power source and the coils 50. The switching signals207 are generated to sequentially energize coils 50 along a tracksegment, where the energized coils 50 create an electromagnetic fieldthat interacts with a magnetic field generated by the drive magnets 140on each mover 100 to control motion of the movers 100 along thecorresponding track segment 12. The switching signals 207 controloperation of switching devices 220 in communication with the drive coils50, including upper switch devices 220 a and lower switching devices 220b. The switching devices 220 may be solid-state devices that areactivated by the switching signals 207, including, but not limited to,transistors, such as insulated-gate bipolar transistors, thyristors, orsilicon-controlled rectifiers.

According to the illustrated embodiment, an AC converter 222 (FIG. 8)can receive a single or multi-phase AC voltage 224 from a power grid.The AC converter 222, in turn, can provide a DC voltage 226 using, forexample, a rectifier front end, at input terminals of a DC supply 228,which could be a DC-to-DC buck converter. The DC supply 228, in turn,can provide a distributed DC bus 230 at the input terminals of thesegments 12, including: a DC reference voltage rail 232, configured toprovide a DC reference voltage (“DC-”) such as ground (0 V); a mid-busDC voltage rail 234, configured to provide half DC power at a mid-busvoltage (“DC 1”) such as 200 V; and a full-bus DC voltage rail 236,configured to provide DC power at a full-bus voltage (“DC 2”), such as400 V. Although illustrated external to the track segment 12, it iscontemplated that the DC bus 230 would extend within the segments 12.Each segment 12 includes connectors to which either the DC supply oranother track segment may be connected such that the DC bus 230 mayextend for the length of the track 10. Optionally, each track segment 12may be configured to include a rectifier section (not shown) and receivean AC voltage input. The rectifier section in each track segment 12 mayconvert the AC voltage to the DC bus 230 utilized by the correspondingtrack segment. It is contemplated that the polarities and magnitudes ofthe various rails of the DC bus 230 may vary within the scope of theinvention.

The processor 204 also receives a feedback signal 209 from the positionsensors 150 along the track segment 12 to provide an indication of thepresence of one or more movers 100. In each power segment 210, theprocessor 204 can generate the switching signals 207 to control thevarious switching devices 220 to provide power to respective coils 50for propelling a mover 100 while continuously receiving feedback signalsfor determining positions of the mover 100. For example, in a first leg“A,” the processor 204 can drive the upper and lower switching devices220 a and 220 b, respectively, to control a corresponding coil 50 in thefirst leg A to propel the mover 100. The processor 204 can detectmovement of the mover 100 from the first leg A toward an areacorresponding to the second leg “B” via the feedback signals from theposition sensors 150. The processor 204 can then drive the upper andlower switching devices 220 a and 220 b, respectively, to control acorresponding coil 50 in the second leg B to continue propelling themover 100, according to a predetermined motion profile. In each leg, thelower switching devices 220 b can be coupled to the DC-voltage rail 232,the upper switching device 220 a can be coupled to the full-bus DCvoltage rail 236, and the coil 50 can be coupled between the upper andlower switching devices 220 a and 220 b, respectively, on a first sideand the mid-bus DC-voltage rail 234 on a second side. Accordingly, theswitching devices 220 in each leg can be configured to connect a coil 50in the leg between rails of the DC bus 230 in various states, such asthe upper switching devices 220 a connecting or disconnecting full-busDC voltage rail 236 to a coil 50 causing positive current flow in coil50, and/or the lower switching device 220 b connecting or disconnectingDC-voltage rail 232 to a coil 50 causing negative current flow in coil50.

The processor 204 receives feedback signals from voltage and/or currentsensors mounted at an input or output of the power segment 210 providingan indication of the current operating conditions of the DC bus 230within the power segment 210 or the current operating conditions of acoil 50 connected to the power segment 210, respectively. According tothe illustrated embodiment, sensing resistors 260 are shown betweenlower switching devices 220 b and the DC-reference voltage rail 232 todetect current through the lower switching devices. Signals from eitherside of the sensing resistors are provided to the signal conditioningcircuitry 244. Similarly, a bus sensing resistor 240 is shown in serieswith the mid-bus DC-voltage rail 234. Signals from either side of thebus sensing resistor 240 are provided to the signal condition circuitry244 through an isolation circuit 246. The signals are provided via anamplifier 248 and an Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) 250 to theprocessor 204 to provide a measurement of the current flowing througheach of the sensing resistors 260 and the bus sensing resistor 240. Itis contemplated that still other sensing resistors or other currenttransducers and voltage transducers may be located at various locationswithin the power segment 210 to provide current and/or voltage feedbacksignals to the processor 204 corresponding to current and/or voltagelevels present on any leg of the DC bus 230 or at the output to any ofthe coils 50 connected to the power segment 210.

In operation, each segment controller 200 receives a reference signal,such as a motion profile, a voltage reference, or a series of switchingsignals corresponding to desired operation of the mover 100 present onthe corresponding track segment 12, 14. The segment controller 200regulates the voltage output to the coils 50 to sequentially energizecoils 50 along the track segment, where the energized coils 50 create anelectromagnetic field that interacts with the drive magnets 140 on themover to drive the mover 100 along the track 10. The segment controller200 may utilize a modulation technique, such as pulse width modulation(PWM) to generate a voltage waveform for each coil 50 having a varyingamplitude and varying frequency to achieve desired operation of themover.

With reference next to FIG. 16 an exemplary waveform 198 of currentsupplied to the coils 50 as a result of the modulated voltage waveformfrom the segment controller 200 is illustrated. The current includes afundamental component and harmonic content resulting from themodulation. The period 199 of one cycle of the fundamental frequency isindicated, and it may be observed that the magnitude of the fundamentalcomponent of the current dominates the waveform 198. Harmonic componentspresent in the current waveform 198 generate the ripple current presenton top of the fundamental component. This current is an exemplarycurrent that may be produced in the coils 50 along a track 10 when a PWMvoltage waveform is applied.

As previously discussed, coils 50 are sequentially energized to engage amover 100. Voltages are sequentially supplied to coils such that thecurrent waveform 198 of FIG. 16 appears to “travel” along the length ofthe track 10. Only a portion of one cycle of the current waveform 198may be required at any one coil 50 to interact with the drive magnets140 if, for example, a single north and south pole are present on themover 100. Alternately, several cycles of the current waveform 198 maybe required if the drive magnets 140 include multiple north and southpoles establishing multiple pole pairs on the mover 100. The drivemagnets 140 are drawn along the track 10 as the magnetic field emittedby the magnets are attracted the electromagnetic field generated by thecurrent in each coil. The fundamental component of the current waveform198 generates the driving force and performs the work necessary topropel the mover. The frequency of the fundamental component of currentapplied to the coils 50 determines the speed at which the mover 100travels along the track. The current in one coil 50 establishes avarying electromagnetic field that interacts with the constant magneticfield emitted from the drive magnets at the location of the coil, whilethe “traveling” current along sequentially activated coils 50establishes a moving electromagnetic field to interact with the constantmagnetic field of the drive magnets 140 to drive the mover 100 along thetrack 10.

While the fundamental component of the current waveform 198 generatesthe driving force to propel a mover 100, each component of the current(i.e., fundamental and harmonic) create electromagnetic fields thatinteract with the mover 100. The electromagnetic fields generated as aresult of the harmonic components may cause a ripple torque observed bythe mover 100 or establish eddy currents in the drive magnets 140,which, in turn, are dissipated as heat losses in the mover 100.

The pick-up coil 160 mounted to the mover 100 reduces the ripple currentand eddy currents generated by the harmonic components in the currentwaveform 198 of each coil 50. When a coil is present in a movingelectromagnetic field, a voltage is induced in the coil. Because themover 100 travels at a speed corresponding to the frequency of thefundamental component of the current waveform 198, the pick-up coil 160mounted to the mover 100 experiences no moving electromagnetic field asa result of the fundamental component. In other words, the mover 100 andthe pick-up coil 160 mounted to the mover is traveling at the same rateas the current “travels” along sequentially enabled coils 50. As aresult, the pick-up coil 160 experiences a constant electromagneticcomponent from the fundamental component of the current which does notinduce a voltage in the pick-up coil 160. The pick-up coil 160,therefore, does not impact performance of the fundamental component ofcurrent as it interacts with the drive magnets 140 on the mover 10.

The harmonic content in the current waveform 198 is present atfrequencies other than the fundamental component. These harmoniccomponents, therefore, generate electromagnetic fields that “travel”along the track at different speeds than the mover 100. The pick-up coil160, therefore, experiences moving magnetic fields as a result of theharmonic components present in the current waveform 198, where thefrequency of the moving electromagnetic field, as experienced by thepick-up coil 160 is the difference between the frequency of the harmoniccomponent and the fundamental component. These moving electromagneticfields experienced by the pick-up coil 160 induce a voltage in thepick-up coil. Further, the energy used to generate the voltage in thepick-up coil 160 is no longer available to generate a ripple torque orundesirable eddy currents within the drive magnets 140 of the mover.

According to another aspect of the invention, the pick-up coil 160provides wireless power transfer from the track 10 to the correspondingmover 100 on which the pick-up coil 160 is mounted. The pick-up coil 160may be connected to a circuit mounted on the mover 100 and serve as awireless power source for the circuit. With reference next to FIGS. 14and 15, an exemplary circuit includes a circuit board 165 mounted to theupper surface of the mover 100. The circuit board 165 may includevarious configurations of electronic components according to anapplication's requirements. The circuit may include a power converter172 configured to receive the AC voltage induced on the pick-up coil 160as an input and to provide a second voltage as an output. The powerconverter may include, for example, diodes arranged as a passiverectifier to convert the AC voltage to a DC voltage. The power convertermay also include a capacitance connected to the output of the passiverectifier in order to reduce a ripple present on the DC voltage fromrectification. Optionally, the power converter 172 may include or bemade up entirely by a voltage regulator. The voltage regulator may beconfigured to receive the rectified DC voltage or the AC voltage inducedin the pick-up coil 160 as an input and supply one or more constant DCvoltages for use by other devices on the circuit board 165.

The circuit board 165 may further include an energy storage device 174,such as a storage capacitor or battery to store energy received at thepick-up coil 160. During periods of time when the energy received viathe pick-up coil 160 exceeds the energy required by the electronicdevices on the circuit board 165, the power converter 172 may supplyenergy to the energy storage device 174. During periods of time when theenergy received via the pick-up coil 160 is less than the energyrequired by the electronic devices on the circuit board 165, the powerconverter 172 may draw from the stored energy.

It is contemplated that the energy received by the pick-up coil may beused to energize at least one electronic device 186 mounted on the mover100. The electronic device 186 may be on the circuit board 165, externalfrom the circuit board, or a combination thereof. The electronic device186 will be selected according to the application requirements but mayinclude, for example, an indicator providing a status of operation onthe mover, an actuator interacting with a product on the mover, a sensorproviding a status, such as the presence or absence, of a product on themover, and the like. Sensors may be provided that, for example, detectvibration or temperature on the mover 100. The energy harvested by thepick-up coil 160 may provide for advanced analytics, conditionmonitoring, or safety applications to be incorporated in the lineardrive system as a result of the wireless power transfer between thecoils 50 and the pick-up coil 160.

It is further contemplated that a control circuit 180 may be required tocontrol operation of the electronic device 186. The control circuit 180may be a series of discrete logic devices implementing combinatoriallogic, a processor 184 operative to execute instructions stored inmemory 182, or a combination thereof. Additionally, multiple electronicdevices 186 may be mounted on the mover 100. The control circuit 180 mayreceive one or more inputs corresponding to an operating status of themover, a product on the mover, or of the controlled process with whichthe mover is interacting and may generate one or more outputs to anactuator to achieve a desired performance in response to the inputs.

The electronic device(s) 186 may further include a wireless transmitteror transceiver operative to transmit information from the controlcircuit 180 to a receiver or second transceiver mounted on the track,adjacent to the track, in the system controller 30, or to any othersuitable location according to the application requirements. Thetransmitter may communicate via a radio frequency (RF) signal, infraredsignal, or via any other wireless communication medium and as would beunderstood in the art.

It is further contemplated that a capacitive element 170 may beoperatively connected to the pick-up coil 160. The capacitive element170 may be a single capacitor or multiple capacitors connected inseries, parallel, or a combination thereof. The inductive nature of thepick-up coil 160 in combination with the capacitive element 170 forms anL-C circuit. The inductance and capacitance values may be selected toestablish a resonance in the L-C circuit at a frequency that iscoincident with the frequency of one of the harmonic components. Theresonance will increase the efficiency and capacity of power transferbetween the electromagnetic field established by the correspondingharmonic component and the pick-up coil 160. Optionally, an additionalinductor may also be connected with the pick-up coil 160 and thecapacitive element 170 to obtain a desired resonance from the L-Ccircuit. Increasing the capacity of power transfer from theelectromagnetic field established by the corresponding harmoniccomponent to the pick-up coil 160 both reduces undesirable effects onthe system as a result of the harmonic components and increases thepower available on the mover 100 to energize the various electronicdevices mounted on the mover.

It should be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplication to the details of construction and arrangements of thecomponents set forth herein. The invention is capable of otherembodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways.Variations and modifications of the foregoing are within the scope ofthe present invention. It also being understood that the inventiondisclosed and defined herein extends to all alternative combinations oftwo or more of the individual features mentioned or evident from thetext and/or drawings. All of these different combinations constitutevarious alternative aspects of the present invention. The embodimentsdescribed herein explain the best modes known for practicing theinvention and will enable others skilled in the art to utilize theinvention.

We claim:
 1. An apparatus for wireless power transfer in an independentcart system, the apparatus comprising: a track having a length; aplurality of drive coils mounted along the length of the track; and atleast one power segment operative to supply an alternating current (AC)voltage to each of the plurality of drive coils, wherein: the AC voltageincludes at least a fundamental component and a harmonic component, thefundamental component of the AC voltage is operative to generate anelectromagnetic field configured to engage a drive member mounted on amover for the independent cart system to propel the mover along thetrack, and the harmonic component of the AC voltage is operative togenerate an electromagnetic field configured to engage a pick-up coilmounted on the mover to induce a voltage in the corresponding pick-upcoil.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein: the at least one powersegment uses a modulation technique to generate the AC voltage, the ACvoltage includes a plurality of harmonic components, and each of theplurality of harmonic components induces a voltage in the pick-up coil.3. An apparatus for wireless power transfer in an independent cartsystem, the apparatus comprising: at least one power segment operativeto supply an alternating current (AC) voltage to each of a plurality ofdrive coils for the independent cart system; and a plurality of movers,wherein each mover includes: a drive member configured to engage afundamental component of an electromagnetic field generated by each ofthe plurality of drive coils, and a pick-up coil configured to engage atleast one harmonic component of the electromagnetic field.
 4. Theapparatus of claim 3 wherein each mover further includes at least oneadditional circuit mounted on the mover, wherein the at least oneadditional circuit receives an induced voltage from the pick-up coil asan input and is configured to provide a regulated voltage as an output.5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein each mover further includes at leastone energy storage device mounted on the mover and wherein the at leastone electronic storage device receives the regulated voltage from the atleast one additional circuit.
 6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein eachmover further includes at least one electronic device mounted to themover, wherein the at least one electronic device receives the regulatedvoltage from the at least one additional circuit.
 7. The apparatus ofclaim 6 wherein the at least one electronic device is selected from oneof an indicator, an actuator, a sensor, a wireless transmitter, awireless receiver, and a wireless transceiver.
 8. The apparatus of claim3 wherein the drive member includes at least one drive magnet spacedapart from the plurality of drive coils by an air gap as thecorresponding mover travels along the track.
 9. The apparatus of claim 3wherein each of the plurality of movers includes a plurality of pick-upcoils and each of the plurality of pick-up coils is mounted proximatethe drive member.
 10. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein each of theplurality of movers further comprises a capacitive load operativelyconnected to the at least one pick-up coil.
 11. The apparatus of claim 3wherein: the independent cart system includes a track having a length,the plurality of drive coils are mounted along the length of the track,and the plurality of movers are operative to travel along the track. 12.A method for wireless power transfer in an independent cart system,wherein a plurality of movers are operative to travel along a track inthe independent cart system, the method comprising the steps of:generating an alternating current (AC) voltage with at least one powersegment, wherein the AC voltage includes at least a fundamentalcomponent and a harmonic component; supplying the AC voltage to aplurality of drive coils mounted along the track, wherein thefundamental component of the AC voltage generates an electromagneticfield configured to interact with a drive member on each of theplurality of movers to drive the corresponding mover along the track;and inducing a voltage in a pick-up coil mounted on the correspondingmover via the harmonic component of the AC voltage.
 13. The method ofclaim 12 wherein the drive member includes at least one drive magnetspaced apart from the plurality of drive coils by an air gap as thecorresponding mover travels along the track.
 14. The method of claim 12wherein each of the plurality of movers includes a plurality of pick-upcoils and each of the plurality of pick-up coils is mounted proximatethe drive member.
 15. The method of claim 12 further comprising the stepof providing a capacitive load operatively connected to the pick-upcoil.
 16. The method of claim 12 further comprising the step of storingat least a portion of the power from the pick-up coil in an energystorage device on each of the plurality of movers.
 17. The method ofclaim 12 further comprising the steps of: receiving the voltage inducedin the pick-up coil at an input of a voltage regulator on thecorresponding mover; and generating at least one DC voltage at an outputof the voltage regulator.
 18. The method of claim 17 further comprisingthe step of energizing at least one electronic device from the at leastone DC voltage.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein the at least oneelectronic device is selected from one of an indicator, an actuator, asensor, a wireless transmitter, a wireless receiver, and a wirelesstransceiver.
 20. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of supplyingthe AC voltage to the plurality of drive coils further includessequentially supplying the AC voltage to the plurality of drive coilsmounted along the track, wherein the fundamental component of the ACvoltage generates an electromagnetic field that sequentially moves alongthe plurality of drive coils and wherein the harmonic component of theAC voltage generates an electromagnetic field that induces the voltagein the pick-up coil as the corresponding mover is driven along thetrack.